1. Field Of The Invention
This invention relates in general to the duplication of the serration edges of keys such as vehicle ignition and trunk keys, house keys, and other similar lock keys, having notched, serration edges along their shanks.
2. Prior Art
It has heretofore been common practice to duplicate keys of the type indicated by grinding notches in the serration edges of the key shanks, using the serration edge of an existing key as a templet. House keys are commonly duplicated in this manner.
Duplication of automotive vehicle keys has generally been by means of an apparatus operating according to numeric code. Machines for this purpose are equipped with coding devices by which when the machine is instructed through keys or levers, the serration edge of a blank held in the machine is cut or notched out in accordance with the particular coded instruction. With originally issued vehicle keys, there is usually supplied in a confidential manner the code numerals for each particular key. Should a duplicate key be required, the particular code numerals for the key must be available for obtaining a duplicate. If the originally supplied code information is lost and not readily available from the original source, considerable inconvenience may be entailed in securing the information and may require aggravating delay.
In order to avoid the bother of obtaining duplicates when keys have been mislaid or lost or have become otherwise unavailable, many persons perfer to secure duplicate keys maintained conveniently available in some hideaway.
For convenient wallet or purse carrying of duplicate keys a novel concept of key and retainer card is disclosed in the copending application of Donald F. Almblad, Ser. No. 619,936 filed June 12, 1984. According to that disclosure, keys, or at least the blanks therefor, are carried in lightweight generally credit card size cards which may be formed from durable plastic. In a perferred form, the cards and keys are fabricated as by casting or injection molding in an integral unit wherein the keys are connected in a breakaway and/or hinged fashion to the retainer card. Such card carried keys are difficult, if not impossible to provide with their serration edges cut or otherwise fashioned in the heretofore available key duplicating apparatus.